WTC 25-27 AUS vs SA 2nd Test MCG 2026: Day-1 Preview & Probable XI

Boxing Day morning at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The first ball lands at 10:30am AEDT. The 90,000-capacity stadium is already filling at 9am — the families with the kids in Australia colours, the travelling South African contingent in green and gold, the post-Christmas-leftovers picnic eskies arriving in waves through the gates. The MCG Boxing Day Test is, by tradition and by design, the most-attended Test fixture in world cricket. The 2026 edition brings South Africa back to the venue for an opener that follows the Perth fixture and sits at the heart of the WTC 25-27 cycle's late mace race.

This is the Day-1 preview — session schedule, probable XIs, the MCG pitch read, the Boxing-Day atmosphere, and the broadcast and ticket reality.

Day-1 session schedule

The MCG Boxing Day Test runs on AEDT (UTC+11). The 10:30am first ball is the standard format.

Session	Local (AEDT)	IST	BST	AWST
Toss	10:00	04:30	23:00 (prev)	07:00
First ball	10:30	05:00	23:30 (prev)	07:30
Lunch	12:30	07:00	01:30	09:30
Resume	13:10	07:40	02:10	10:10
Tea	15:10	09:40	04:10	12:10
Resume	15:30	10:00	04:30	12:30
Stumps	17:30	12:00	06:30	14:30

The IST 05:00 first ball is an early start for Indian audiences. The post-lunch session lands more comfortably in IST 07:40 morning viewing.

The MCG pitch read

The MCG drop-in pitch in late December has, in recent home cycles, been a slightly slower surface than the Perth or Adelaide equivalents. Day 1 typically offers some seam movement in the morning under cloud cover. The bounce is more even than at Perth. From Day 3 onwards, the surface offers some grip for the spinners.

Day	Pace and bounce	Movement	Spin
Day 1	Moderate bounce	Seam under cloud	Minimal
Day 2	Moderate bounce	Reduced	Some grip
Day 3	Moderate bounce	Reverse possible	Sharper turn
Day 4	Variable	Variable	Foot-mark help
Day 5	Variable	Variable	Significant turn

The pattern rewards captains who balance their pace attack with a quality spinner. Nathan Lyon's Boxing-Day record at the MCG is one of the central Australian assets.

Probable XIs

Australia probable XI

Australia's Boxing Day XI carries forward from Perth, with the workload-management call on the senior pace trio.

Probable XI: Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas, Marnus Labuschagne, Steve Smith, Travis Head, Cameron Green, Alex Carey (wk), Mitchell Starc, Pat Cummins (c), Nathan Lyon, Josh Hazlewood.

If one of the senior pacers is rested for workload management (typically Hazlewood by Test 2 of an Australian summer), Scott Boland is the in-form replacement.

South Africa probable XI

SA's XI is the same multi-format unit that played at Perth. The Maharaja-Lyon spin matchup is the secondary tactical card.

Probable XI: Aiden Markram (c), Tony de Zorzi, Ryan Rickelton, Temba Bavuma, David Bedingham, Tristan Stubbs, Kyle Verreynne (wk), Marco Jansen, Kagiso Rabada, Keshav Maharaj, Anrich Nortje.

Toss reading

MCG Boxing Day Tests have, in recent home cycles, rewarded captains who win the toss and bat first. The early-morning seam under cloud cover is the central tactical variable, but the surface flattens out for batting through the middle of the day.

Toss outcome	Likely call
Cummins wins	Bat first
Markram wins	Bat first

The Boxing-Day crowd's expectation is also a factor. The home captain typically prefers to put a score on the board for the home crowd to enjoy through Day 2.

Weather forecast

Melbourne in late December averages 22-27 Celsius daytime highs. The cloud cover is variable. There is a known tendency for late-afternoon storms across the Boxing-Day-to-New-Year window.

Time (AEDT)	Temp (deg C, expected)	Wind (km/h, expected)	Cloud
10:30	21	12	Variable
13:30	25	14	Cloud breaks
16:30	26	16	Variable storms

The afternoon storm risk is the operational variable. Boxing-Day Tests have lost sessions to summer storms before. The MCG's drainage is excellent, and play typically resumes within 60-90 minutes of any rain delay.

Broadcast

Region	Broadcaster (expected)
Australia	Fox Cricket / Kayo / Channel 7 (FTA)
India	Sony Sports / FanCode
UK	TNT Sports
South Africa	SuperSport
ROW	ICC.tv (sub-licensed)

The Channel 7 free-to-air coverage in Australia means the Boxing-Day Test reaches every household. The IST 05:00 first ball is an early start for Indian audiences but the fixture lands in comfortable morning IST viewing once the first session is underway.

Tickets

MCG Boxing Day tickets are the most contested in Australian cricket. The 90,000-capacity venue typically sells out for Day 1, with general-admission tickets going first. Indicative pricing, until Cricket Australia confirms:

Tier	Day-1 Boxing Day (AUD)
General	35-70
Premium Stand	110-180
Members' (MCC)	150-220 (Members only)
Hospitality	500-1,200

Boxing Day tickets typically open 6 months before the Test. Day-1 walk-up tickets are extremely rare. We do not link to ticketing pages until they are live and verified.

Logistics for travelling fans

The MCG is in central Melbourne. Richmond railway station is a 5-minute walk to the ground. Hotels in the CBD, East Melbourne, and Richmond are within walking distance. The Yarra Park outside the venue is the traditional matchday picnic and pre-Test gathering point.

For travelling South African fans, Melbourne's direct flight links from Johannesburg make the trip more accessible than at any other point in the SA-AUS bilateral history.

The Boxing-Day atmosphere

The Boxing-Day Test is, beyond the cricket, a Melbourne tradition. Families return from the morning Christmas-leftovers brunch at 9am for the 10:30 first ball. The 80-90,000 first-day attendance produces an atmosphere that no other Test fixture in the world matches. The crowd noise on a wicket — particularly an early home wicket — is the loudest in cricket.

What the Test means for the cycle

The Test sits inside the WTC 25-27 cycle's late mace race. The result is sensitive for both teams. Australia's home record on Boxing Day is strong; SA arrive as the form Test team of 2026.

Squad-watch storylines for Day 1

Three things to watch. First: the senior-pacer workload call — whether Hazlewood is rested for Boxing Day after a heavy Perth workload. Second: Steve Smith vs Kagiso Rabada — the central personal matchup of the series. Third: Travis Head's Boxing-Day record — Head has been one of the most reliable Australian batters at the MCG in recent home cycles.

The first ball at 10:30am will tell us a lot. The MCG crowd will tell us more about whether Boxing Day delivers the result that the home cycle's narrative arc is asking for.